Phonograph-reproducer.



v A. N. PIERMAN. PHONOGRAPH REPRODUGBR. APPLICATION FILED MAR. 23, 1912.

Patented Bea-1,1914.

UNITED STATESPATENT oFFicE.

ALEXANDER n. PIEBMAN, or NEWARK. NEW JERSEY, ASSIGNOR, BY MESNE ASSIGN- MENTS, TO N W JERSEY PATENT COMPANY. or WEST ORANGE, NEW JERSEY, A

CORPORATION OF NEW JERSEY.

PHONOGRAPH-REBRODUCER.

T 0 aZFwi Lmn. it may. concern Be it'known that I, ALExAsimii N. P isii- MAN', a citizen of the United States, residing at Newark, in the county of Essex ai'idState of New Jersey, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Phonograpli- Reprodurers. o'i which the follmving is a full, cleaigand concise description.

The present invention relates to phonograph reproducers and has for its object the provision of an improved mounting for the stylus lever, wherein all looseness in the connections of parts is obviated. which renders the reproducer capable ol..w.ithstancling jarring without causing the stylus to skip from one thread-0f a record to another and thus insures the exact tracking and reproduction of a record. 1

It is customary in reproducers, as now constructed, to pivotallyflnount the floating weight onath'e sound box, to provide a member, pivotally connected to the weight for carrying the stylus lever, and to provide separatemeans. such as-a spring, for normally holding the member in central po-, sition while allowing lateral movements thereof. This construction is objectionable owing to the impossibilityofmaking a sufliciently tight fit in the'pivotal. Connection of the floating weight and member, the loose iiess existing therein, -and which increases with use, frequently resulting in the jumping or skipping of the stylus from one thread of a record to anotherwhen the reproducer is jarred, giving a faulty reproduction and producing foreign and objectionable sounds.

In overcoming the objections indicated, I preferably construct my reproducer as fol lows: A floating weight is'pivotally mounted on a reproducer sound box" of usual construction,'a 'inember of-small inertia compared with that ofthe. weight is employed for carryiiig. the stylus lever. which-is connected to the diaphragm mounted in the sound box in any suitable manner, and the member is mounted on the weight by means ofa resilient member rigidly connected at its ends to the weight and member respectively. This resilient connection between the weight and member may be of any suitable construction, but as shown is a very thin flat sensitive spring of any suitable material, such as spring steel, which normally maintains the member carrying the stylus lever'in central Specification of Letters Patent.

position while allowing'lateral movement of the member with respect to the weight so as Patented Dec. 1, 1914.. Application filed March 23. 19l2. Serial No. 685,li36.

to permit the stylus to faithfully-follow all i irregularities in therecoid threads In a. reproducer constructed in acei.irdance with my invention, the stylus will not skip from one threadto another when the reprodurer is jarred, for all looseiiess in thecoiinection'between the floating weightand member carrying the stylus lever is'obvijated.

Other objects of my invention reside llltlle features hereinafter described and claimed. In order that my invention may be more clearly uni'lerstood, reference is made to the accompanying drawing forming a part of the-specification in which t'he'sai'ne reference characters are used to designate. corresponding parts throughout and in which:

l igiire 1 is an elevation partly broken a'wa y, and partly insectioinshowm a reproducer constructed inaccord-ance with my iii-' ventioii; Fig. 2 is a bottom view of Fig. 1;

and Fig. 3 is a viewsimilar.'toFig. 2, showing different positions of the member carryq =ing the stylus levergth'sonnd box body being omitted. v

The sound box body 1 is'proij'ided with a suitable diaphragm f2,'held in position in any suitable manner, and with an annular rim or flange 3. I pending member -l-, which may be 'of any lug to prevent lateral movement of the weight with respect to the sound box. This Flamge 3 is proyidecl with a tie '85 suitable form. but is here shown as a bracket preferable manner of mounting the weight confines its'move-ment to a. direction sub stantially at right angles to the plane ot'diaphragm 2. A member 9- of small inertia compared with floating weight 6. is connected to said weight by anysuitable resilient means. as for example, by a very thin, flat and sensitive spring 10 of any suitable material. such as spring steel. rigidly connected at its ends to floating weight 6 and member 9 respectively. Part 9 is shown as an elonga ted member which is preferably mounted in a position substantially parallel with flouting weight (3 and Within said weight by providing a central recess 11 in said weight of sufiicient width to allow considerable lateral movement of the member therein, as shown by full and dotted lines in Fig. 3. Resilient member 10 is shown as arranged in a vertical position with one of its ends securely fixed to Weight 6, at the center of the Wall closing the end of recess 11, while the other end of member 10 is fixed to the flat end 12 of member 9 at its vertical center line. The resilient member 10 normally'maintains member 9 in acentral position with respect to the floating weight 6 and when member 9 is in normal position the long tudinal axes of members 6 and 9 are in substantially the same plane.

Mounted on member 9 in any suitable way as by a yoke 13 fastened to the under side of said member and pivot pin. 14 is a stylus lever 15 connected to diaphragm 2 in any suitable manner, as b I link 16 passing through an aperture 1 provided in said member 9. Stylus lever 15 carries the usual stylus 18 adapted to track the threads of the record, a portion of which is shown at 19 in Fig. 1. Lateral movement of member 9 with respect to the diaphragm, and in the example shown also with respect to thefloat ing weight, is confined Within limits, by reason of the free end of said member being received in a stirrup 20 depending from the sound box body 1. Member 21 is a brace connecting the separated end portions of Weight 6, formed by recess orslot 1-1.- Weight 6 is provided with the usual groove 22 in order that the mounting of stylus lever 15 on member 9 may be readily accessible. According to the preferred form of my invention, all movements of the stylus resulting from large surface irregularities are provided for by the pivotal connection of the weight to the sound box body, while all lateral movement of the stylus with respect to the sound box body are taken care of by the mounting for the stylus lever forming the special feature of my invention. Resilient member 10 is free from stress only when member 9 is in its central position. A force acting to move member 9 to either side of its central position places member 10 under a slight stress to gently return the member 9 to its central position, when the force ceases to so act.

It is to be understood that I am in no way limited to-the particular form of my invention illustrated and described but only by the spirit thereof as disclosed in the specili cation .and claims.

Having thus fully described my in vention and the preferred form of carrying the same into effect, what I claim. and desire to protect by Letters Patent of the United States is as follows:

1. A phonograph reproducer comprising a floating weight, a stylus lever, a member provided with a fulcrum for said lever about which fulcrum the lever is arranged to oscillate in accordance with the vibrations imparted to the stylus by the undulations of a sound. record groove, and resilient means for supporting said member from the floating weight, for normally holding said member in a position in line with that portion of the record groove in engagement with the stylus and adapted to return it to such position after the cessation of any force tending to move it therefrom, substantially as described. H 1

2. In a phonograph reproducer, the com bination with the sound box body and diaphragm mounted therein, of a floating weight pivoted to said body and movable in a direction intersecting the plane of the diaphragm, a stylus lever connected to the diaphragm, a member provided with a fulcrum for said lever about which fulcrum the lever is arranged to oscillate in accordance with the vibrations imparted to the stylus by the undulations of the sound record groove and a spring fixed at one end to said floating weight and supporting said mem her from its free end, said spring normally holding said member in a position in line with that portion of the record groove in" engagement with the stylus and adapted to return it to such position after the cessa tion of any force tending to move it therefrom, substantially as described.

3. In a phonographreproducer, the combination with the sound box body and diaphragm mounted therein, of a floating weight pivoted to said.body, a stylus lever connected with the diaphragm, an elongated member of small inertia compared with the weight and provided with a pivot for said lever, said lever being arranged to oscillate about said pivot in accordance with. the vibrations imparted to the stylus by the un dulations of the sound record groove and a spring secured at one end to said weight and supporting said member from its other end. said spring normally holding said member in a predetermined position with respect to said weight and being under stress when said member is moved from said predetermined position, substantially. as described.

4. In a phonograph reproducer, the combination with the sound box body and diaphragm mounted therein. of a floating weight pivoted to said body, an elongated member of small inertia compared with the weight and carrying a stylus lever which is connected with the diaphragm. and a spring secured at one end to said weight and supporting said member from its other end, said spring normally holding said member in a predetermined position with respect to said Weight and being under stress when said member is moved from said predetermined position, the longitudinal axes of the weight and member being substantially in the same plane when the member is in its normal position, substantially as described.

5. A phonograph reproducer comprising 'a floating weight, a stylus lever, a member provided with a fulcrum for said lever about which fulcrum the lever is arranged to oscillate in accordance with the vibrations imparted to the stylus by the undulations of a sound record groove, and resilient means for supporting said member from the floating weight, said means being adapted to normally maintain the memberin a predetermined position with respect to the floating weight and being placed under stress when said member is moved from said predetermined position, substantially as described.

This specification signed and witnessed this 21st day Of March, 1912.

ALEXANDER N. PIERMAN. \Vitnesses \VILLIAM A. HARDY, ANNA R. KLEHM. 

